Student Opportunity: Museum Docent Position at The Weems-Botts Museum

Looking for an opportunity to gain museum experience? The Weems-Botts Museum seeks a docent to guide visitors through the historic house museum and to help with special programming (children’s activities, school field trips, etc.). They are open Wednesday-Sunday, May-October for public tours and offer tours by appointment and special programming year round. They also are have opportunities to gain experience writing for their newsletter, assisting with research for interpretation and exhibitions, planing new programs, and more.

The museum is named after Parson Weems, author of George Washington’s famous biography and originator of the cherry tree story, and Benjamin Botts, one of Aaron Burr’s defense attorney, who owned the home in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. However, Historic Dumfries Virginia’s mission is to preserve and promote the history of the area so much of the focus is on general town history, particularly colonial and Revolutionary War history. Dumfries was the oldest chartered town in Virginia and one of the four major shipping towns in colonial America, rivaling New York, Philadelphia, and Boston until its harbor silted in in the early 19th century. The Weems-Botts Museum is one of the three colonial buildings still standing in Dumfries.

If you are interested in the opportunity, contact Karleen Kovalcik at (703) 221-2218 or weemsbotts@msn.com. A form for online application is available here.

Ms. Kovalcik will be happy to discuss the possibility of internships for students and will consider student’s resumes for a weekend, part-time museum assistant position. The position will provide house tours when needed, but will also assist with museum administration and collections management. Ms. Kovalcik recently completed an MA in Public History and a Graduate Certificate in Cultural Resource Management from West Virginia University and has worked for multiple history organizations including Dumbarton House, Nantucket Historical Association, and Sully Historic Site. She will be happy to mentor an undergraduate who is interested in pursuing a career in public history.